Cam actuated round deflector



June 9, 1959 R. H. COLBY CAM ACTUATED ROUND DEFLECTOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 17, 1956 INVENTOR 15; Chun Hflulgy wzifllmafl r a w- Q June 1959 R. H. COLBY 2,889,750

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United States Patent 6 2,889,750 CAM NCTUATED ROUND?DEFLECTOR". Richard-H. Colby, South Hadley, Mass, assignor to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the:Army

Application May- 1:7,;1956;.Serial No-.. 585592 1"Claiin. (Cl; 89-33) (Granted under'Titlef 35', US; Code (1-952),.sec. 266) The invention described herein. may be manufactured and used by or for the Government. for governmental purposes without the payment ofany royalty thereon.

My invention relates. to a device. for feeding cartridges from an ammunition belt to an automaticgun of. com.- pact size and' short recoil operation: for. tank use or. the like, and more particularly to a cartridge deflector in: the feeder of the gun for directing the cartridges into the barrel thereof.

The cartridges include projectiles with. fuzes inclosed therein and the ammunition belt is provided with links of substantially the same length as: the cases of the cartridges. The links include pairs of resilient prongs to engage the primer end of the cases of the cartridges and rigid collars to substantially inclose the forward ends of the cases and retain the cartridges in the belt. The prongs are di'sposed'for minimum tension to retain the cases in the links and yet permit axial stripping of the cartridges therefrom by the bolt to clear the cartridges from the restraint of the collar.

In conventional guns employing axial stripping of the cartridges from the links, a fixed deflector is disposed adjacent the stripping position to direct the cartridges into alignment with the breech opening in the barrel but the stripping position and the barrel of the instant gun are closely spaced to secure a minimum length of receiver. A fixed deflector for the present gun, therefore, would present such a steep slope to cartridges proceeding to the barrel that impact with such a slope would damage the fuzes.

It is an object of my invention, therefore, to provide a simple and eflicient cartridge deflector for such a gun.

Another object of my invention is to provide the gun with a movable cartridge deflector.

A further object of my invention is to provide the gun with a movable cartridge deflector operable responsive to the recoil cycle of the bolt.

Other aims and objects Will appear from the following explanation.

In carrying out my invention the receiver includes a laterally axised deflector provided with a roller tip and biased to a normal position for tangency of the tip with the neck portion of the cartridge case. A follower of the deflector engages a cam secured to the bolt for actuating the tip into engagement with the case to depress the cartridges into alignment with the breech of the barrel while being stripped from the engagement link by the bolt during travel to battery position.

For a more complete understanding of my invention reference is made to the following description and accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a gun incorporating one embodiment of my invention with a cartridge in stripping position;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 with the cartridge aligned with the chamber;

Fig. 3 is a view along line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Patented June. 9,, 1.959

Fig. 4 is a view along line 4-4 of- Fig. 3 with the dc.- flector innormal position;

Fig. 5 is aview similar to Fig; 4 with the deflector in operating position;

Fig. 6-is a view along line'66 of Fig. 1'; and

Fig. 7 is aperspective view of the device with the: ace tuator in normal position.

Accordingly, a gun 12, having a receiver 14" and a barrel 16 with a chamber 1-8 forcartridges. 20 is provided with a: feeder 22 on receiver 14. Barrel 16 is disposed for recoil in. receiver 14- when a cartridge 20 is distcharged in chamber 18. Cartridges 20 are secured in links 24' of an ammunition belt 26, and the feeder is disposed for conveying the links to a. stripping: position on a tray 27 in the feeder with the axes of the cartridges spaced from the axis of barrel 16; Link. 24 is: shown in the stripping position in Fig. 1. Cartridges- 20 re spectively include cases 28- and projectiles 3i), and links 24 substantially inclose cases 28.

Gun 12 is provided with abolt- 32 biased to a; bat.- tery position bya spring 33 and disposed to reciprocate in. rearward and forward strokes from the battery' position responsive to recoil of barrel 1 6- to propel cartridges 20 fom the stripping position into chamber 18= responsive to the forward strokes, and extract the cases 28' from chamber 18 in the: rearward. strokes;

As. shownin Figs. 6. and: 7,v a cylinder 4,3 is secured.- to bolt 3-2 by a. connector 44 for reciprocation therewith: in a housing; 45;, and provided: longitudinally along the upper. portion of such: cylinder is a. chordal; surface: 42 which is? terminated at the.- rear and: by a:- cam; surface 47 extending upwardly and rearwardly from such chordal surface to the periphery of such cylinder. A deflector 34 includes an arm 37 and a follower 40 which are integrally mounted to opposite ends of rod 36 and are provided respectively with roller tips 38 and 41. Rod 36 is pivotally mounted to receiver 14 so that roller tip 41 on follower 49 is engageable with chordal surface 42, cam surface 47 and the periphery of cylinder 43 during reciprocation of such cylinder. A flat 49 may be provided along the upper surface of cylinder 43 for engagement by roller tip 41. A coil spring 46 is mounted over rod 36 and is engaged at opposite ends to receiver 14 and deflector 34 so that roller 41 is biased downwardly into engagement with cylinder 43. P01- lower 40 is so disposed respective to arm 37 that when roller 41 on such follower is in engagement with chordal surface 42, roller 38 on such arm is disposed in an elevated position to permit the uninterrupted passage of projectile 30 thereunder while cartridge 20 is being stripped from the engaged link 24 during passage of bolt 32 to battery position, as is best shown in Fig. 4. Cam surface 47 is so disposed on cylinder 43 that, when roller 41 is engaged therewith during forward movement of cylinder 43 responsive to passage of bolt 32 to battery position, roller 38 is pivoted downwardly to engage case 28 of the cartridge 20 rearwardly of projectile 30 to tilt such cartridge downwardly into alignment with chamber 18 of barrel 16 while being stripped from belt 26. The engagement of roller 41 with the periphery of cylinder 43 during continued forward movement thereof maintains roller 38 in engagement with case 28 to cooperate with the engaging link 24 in maintaining cartridge 20 in alignment with chamber 18 while being moved forwardly from such link into such chamber by bolt 32. Because of the compactness of subject gun, projectile 30 enters chamber 18 by the time that case 28 is disengaged from link 24.

Thus, during operation of gun 12, feeder 22 actuates belt 26 to successively carry the cartridges 20 therein to the stripping position wherein the bases of the cartridges are engageable by bolt 32 during travel thereof from rearward to battery position. As cartridge 20 is stripped axially from the engaging link 24 by bolt 32, the bias of spring 46 maintains the engagement of roller 41 with chordal surface 42 and, consequently, roller 38 is positioned away from engagement by projectile 30 While passing thereby. When projectile 30 has cleared roller 38, roller 41 on follower 40 engages cam surface 47 whereby arm 37' is pivoted to engage roller 38 thereon with case 28 rearwardly of projectile 30 for tilting cartridge 20 downwardly into alignment with chamber 18 of barrel 16.

During continued forward movement of bolt 32 and cylinder 43, roller 41 rides along the outside periphery of such cylinder and thereby maintains roller 38 in position to rollingly guide cartridge 20 into chamber 18.

Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been described in detail herein, it is evident that many variations may be devised Within the spirit and scope thereof and the following claim is intended to include such variations.

I claim:

In combination with a gun including a receiver, a barrel with a chamber for receiving a cartridge, an ammunition belt comprised of a plurality of links for respectively engaging the cartridges disposed therein for axial removal, each of said cartridges including a case and a projectile extending forwardly therefrom, a feeder engaged with the ammunition belt for successively moving the cartridges therein to a stripping position wherein the longitudinal axis of the cartridges are spaced from the longitudinal axis of the chamber and a bolt disposed for reciprocation between a battery and a rearward position and for engagement with the base of the cartridge in the stripping position during movement to the battery position for removing said cartridge from engaging one of the links, a device for directing the cartridges to the chamber while being stripped from the links, said device including a cylinder connected to the bolt for reciprocation therewith, a chordal surface on said cylinder, a cam surface extending from the rear end of said chordal surface to the periphery of said cylinder, a deflector pivotally mounted in the receiver, said deflector including a roller tipped arm engageable with the cartridges while being stripped from the links and a roller tipped follower disposed for engagement with said cylinder, said chordal surface and cam surface being so disposed in said cylinder respective to said follower, and said follower and arm being so disposed respective to each other, that said arm is held clear of engagement by the projectile when said follower is in engagement with said chordal surface and is pivoted by engagement of said follower with cam surface into rolling engagement with the case rearwardly of the proiectile to align the cartridge with the chamber while being stripped from the engaging link by the bolt and said arm is maintained as a rolling guide to direct the cartridge into the chamber during continued movement of the bolt to battery position by engagement of said follower with the periphery of said cylinder, and a spring for biasing said follower into engagement with said cylinder.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,730,269 Darne Oct. 1, 1929 FOREIGN PATENTS 384,475 Great Britain Dec. 8, 1932 212,655 Switzerland Mar. 17, 1941 

